Free Slave by Cheryl Brooks

right, of course. Though it’s possible her memory might have been erased. I’ve seen stranger things done to people.” Like putting rings through their genitals to control them, for example. I shuddered slightly at the thought of just how much that must have hurt my poor Cat!
    It was odd that I still thought of him that way: my Cat.
    Like my dog, or my goldfish. I shouldn’t think of him as a pet, I told myself. He was free; I didn’t own him—and didn’t really want to, even though it was a given fact that I would treat him better than anyone else ever had. I hoped whoever had Ranata was at least a benevolent master—though if the Statzeelian male I had seen was anything to go by, I couldn’t have too many realistic expectations along those lines.
“I am certain that you will find her unharmed,” he said, possibly assuming that my shudder had been because of my sister and not my Cat. There it was again: my Cat. I was thinking of him as my pet, which made me wonder if he would prove to be as hard to leave behind as my dog had been when I’d left home for a life in space. I also wondered what he would do once we found Ranata and his obligation to me was fulfilled. Would he take his forty credits and disappear, or would he follow me home like a stray dog? It was probably better for everyone if our ways parted— although if he truly wanted to stay with me and would keep on rubbing my neck like that…I might just decide to keep him.
    It was the next logical question, so, what the hell, I went ahead and asked it. “What will you do once we find her?”
    “I do not know,” he replied slowly. “I would like to avenge the deaths of my people, but I am only one man.
    I cannot fight an entire civilization alone.”
    I shrugged. “I don’t know, Cat. They say the pen is mightier than the sword, you know. You could just spread the word. Does anyone else know who was responsible for the destruction of your planet?”
    Cat shook his head. “I do not believe so,” he replied.
    “If it were known that I knew, I do not believe I would still be alive. I would have been hunted down and killed by now.”
    “Okay, now you’ve got my attention!” I said dryly, twisting around to look up at him. “Come on, out with it.”
    “Out with what?”
Either I was gonna have to stop speaking in Earth idioms, or he was gonna have to learn some of them.
    These constant explanations could get old. “Tell me what you know about who it was that destroyed your planet,” I said carefully.
    “I do not know what they are called,” he said. “But they are an ugly, evil race, with fur-covered bodies and long, pointed snouts and vicious fangs.”
    “And really, really nasty, huh?”
    “Yes.”
    At least he understood the word “nasty.” I wasn’t sure I could explain that one, unless I referred to his Cylopean master as an example. Of course, that guy was way beyond nasty, and anyone who would destroy a planet would be, as well. Sounded familiar, though, sort of like— “Nedwuts!” I exclaimed. “They were fuckin’ Nedwuts!”
    “What are Nedwuts?” he asked.
    “The gang of slimeballs that kidnapped my sister were Nedwuts!” I explained. “I’ve always felt that the lot of them should be rounded up and interned on their own damn planet!” I said hotly. “They cause trouble wherever they go—although I must admit that completely destroying a planet would seem a bit ambitious for them.
    Mostly they’re just petty thieves and sadistic little bastards, but sometimes they’ll do much worse things—
    for a price.” I looked up at him and went on earnestly,
    “Listen, Cat, if you want me to help you kill a few of them, I might actually consider it. I know I’d like to kill the ones who took Ranata!” I shook my head in disgust and spat out the word again. “Nedwuts!”
Cat seemed to focus on the most peculiar things.
    “What is a slimeball?” he asked.
    I rolled my eyes, having to laugh just a bit. “Sorry, Cat.